Second life energy storage firm Connected Energy is to ramp up its analytic capabilities using £350,000 of new funding.
The Low Carbon Innovation Fund 2 (LCIF2) – funded by the European Regional Development Fund – has invested into the company, which specialises in reusing electric vehicle (EV) batteries to build grid-scale energy storage systems.
Matthew Lumsden, CEO of Connected Energy, told Current± that the funding is to be used to analyse performance data “in more detail” to allow the company to improve system efficiency and increase battery life, pointing to how Connected Energy’s systems are increasing in size using a range of different batteries and providing “more diverse services to customers”.
As it stands, Connected Energy’s systems range from 300kW behind-the-meter systems to a 12MW system currently in development.
Most recently, the company partnered with Suffolk County Council for a 300kW/360kWh system using 24 second life Renault Kangoo batteries.
It is also spearheading the Smart Hubs project, which is to integrate a 14.4MWh energy storage system with a variety of other technologies involved in the decarbonisation of heat, energy and transport.
Lumsden said that the company is “delighted to add LCIF2 to our growing roster of investors”.
“The fund is an interesting hybrid, backed by and therefore strengthening our links with local and national government, but with a typical private fund’s focus on financial returns.”
The LCIF2 is managed by merchant bank Turquoise, with the UK Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government being the Managing Authority.
It is designed to invest in small to medium sized businesses based in England developing products and services which will have a beneficial environmental impact.
